Chemical treatments are often prepared, transported and used in dry powder or granular form. Typically, such treatments must be dispersed or dissolved in water or other liquids before being used. Unfortunately, when dry powdered or granular chemicals are dispersed or dissolved, they often do not diffuse completely or uniformly throughout the liquid, and may settle in the mixing container and obstruct the supply and return lines. This can result in undesirable variations in concentration, errors in treatment levels and equipment failure.
These, and the other problems inherent in the use of dry powdered or granular chemicals may be avoided or reduced by pressing the dry powdered or granular chemicals into pellets and then immersing the pellets in a liquid to gradually strip away and disperse or dissolve the chemicals. Unfortunately, currently available systems for achieving this end are often large, complex, and expensive and do not produce consistent results.
For example, in one common system, pelletized materials are suspended in a quiescent liquid reservoir to slowly break-up and disperse or dissolve the pellets, producing a mixture which may be used as desired. In other currently available systems, referred to as "pot feeders" and "by-pass feeders", one or more jets or currents of water are directed parallel to the vertical axis of the reservoir, to pass directly into and through the pelletized materials. These systems, unfortunately, are not as efficient as desired to completely dissolve and disperse many pelletized materials.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for dispersing or dissolving particles of a pelletized material in a liquid.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for accurately controlling the rate at which a pelletized material is dispersed or dissolved in a liquid.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for regulating the distribution of a liquid having particles of a pelletized material suspended therein.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a highly reliable method and a low maintenance apparatus for dispersing or dissolving particles of a pelletized material in a liquid which, itself, requires no moving parts.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and drawings.